Shears



Jan. 6, 1953 P. ALTHAUSEN SHEARS Filed Feb. 1 1950 INVENTOR. PAUL ALTHAUSEN ATTORNEYS Patented Jan. 6, 1 953 I l UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE Paul Althausen, Brooklyn, N. Y. Application February 1, 1950, Serial No. 141,620

This invention relates to shears, and particularly those for use by barbers in the cutting of hair.

Presently known shears are deficient in operation because of their tendency to slip over the material to be cut. This slipping allows the material which is to be cut to be grasped between 1 Claim. (01. 30- 257) 1 cordance with the conventional manner of conthe blades of the shears and, in the case of hair cutting, may prove most undesirable. In order to prevent slipping, various devices have been employed including bowing of the blades of the shears, tightening of the bevel screw and various other structural features, none of which have proven satisfactory.

An object of the presentinvention is to provide a pair of shears which may be employed with a minimum of fatigue.

Another object of this invention is to provide a pair of shears which will not slip over the material to be cut. A further object of this invention is to provide a pair of shears which will take advantage of the normal configuration of the human hand, in increasing its cutting action.

A feature of the present invention is its novel offset thumb bow shaft.

Another feature of this invention is its adjustable set screw structure which enables the operator to align the points of the shears.

A further feature of this invention is its elevated thumb bow structure, which eliminates operator fatigue.

The invention consists of the construction, combination and arrangement of parts, as herein illustrated, described and claimed. In the accompanying drawings, forming a part hereof, is illustrated one form of embodiment of the invention, in which drawings similar reference characters designate corresponding parts,

and in which: Figure 1 is a top plan view of a complete embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 2 is a side elevation of the shears, ac-

cording to this invention.

Figure 3 is a section taken on line 3-3 in Figure 2, looking in the direction indicated by the arrows.

pivotally' struction.

At a point forward of the offset [5, the shaft I3 is provided with a threaded bore 16 to receive therein a set screw IT. The set screw [1 extends below the shaft I3 and is adapted to strike against the upper surface of the shaft M, as indicated at l8. It will thus be seen that the shafts I3--M may be brought together no closer than the point at which the bottom of the set screw l1 makes contact with the shaft M.

In addition to being offset, the thumb bow shaft [3 is upwardly curved, as indicated at l9, so that the thumb bow 20 lies in a plane above that of the thumb bow 2!, and substantially above that of the presently known shears (not shown).

As a result of the above described structure, the shears operate so that when the fingers of the user are thrust through the bows 29-2! in the customary manner, a lateral thumb pressure is naturally applied to the thumb bow 20. This lateral pressure is translated through the shaft 13 and the pivotal screw 12 to the shear blades II. The blades H are thus brought into a most advantageous contact with each other along their cutting edges. It is thus possible to loosen the pivotal screw 12 in a degree formerly impossible with the conventional type of shears without decreasing the cutting action of the said shears. The loosening of the pivotal screw 12 decreases the amount of wear upon the cutting edges of the shears. It will thus be possible to use shears made in accordance with the present invention over a more prolonged period of time, without the necessity of sharpening the said blades. This loosening of the pivotal screw also enables the shears to be operated with the greatly reduced amount of fatigue at an increased speed.

The elevated thumb bow 20 further reduces the fatigue of the user, by making it unnecessary to completely close the hand durin each cutting operation. It is well known that the human hand can apply more pressure at a point when the fingers are not too close to one another, and

the set screw I! provided in the present invention,

enables the operator, although unskilled in the adjustment of shears, to bring the points of the said shears into absolute register, despite any variations due to sharpening or mishandling of the said shears.

The set screw l1 also provides a heeling point for the shafts of the said shears, which heeling point is provided by the meeting of the post in the customary scissors construction.

It will be apparent from the foregoing description and the accompanying drawings, that there has been provided a type of shears which will operate efliciently over a prolonged period of time; require a minimum amount of sharpening, and greatly reduce the fatigue of the users thereof.

Having thus fully described the invention, what is claimed as new and desired to be securedby Letters Patent of the United States, is:

A pair of shears comprising, a first blade, a second blade, a transverse member pivotally connecting the blades at one end thereof, an extension in line with the first blade, a laterally offset extension of the second blade, a finger receiving bow carried upon the free end of the straight extension and a thumb receiving bow upon the free end of the offset extension, said bows lying in parallel, laterally spaced planes.

PAUL ALTI-IAUSEN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date Re. 2,209 Barnard Mar. 27, 1386 398,509 Henckels Feb. 26, 1889 513,542 Stockm-an Jan. 30, 1894 968,219 Wheeler Aug. 23, 1910 1,205,999 Kirmsee Nov. 28, 1916 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 399,273 France Apr. 17,1909 

